(open)

[seas_open]

While the event out at the Siren Cove Lodge and Resort hadn't been a bad way to start off in a new town, April hadn't bothered trying to get a room, instead opting to return to her apartment in town. She supposes she might have been able to find someone willing to share, but she's not quite prepared to jump into such arrangements, instead choosing to watch those around her, interacting with them to test the waters and see what they might be able to do for her.

Today she's doing a bit of exploring. She walks the boardwalk, looking into store windows as she goes -- a few of them are closed, their owners out at the Lodge, she expects -- and then through town. She passes the library, a police station, several cafes and small restaurants. Thus far she isn't sure what to make of Siren Cove, if the name has anything to do with what she might find or if she's just killing more time before she has to move on again. There's a part of her that wants to find nothing except a little bit of fun, but there's another, quiet part of her looking for something more. Some explanation as to what she is, where she's come from.

She's wearing a cute summer dress and a pair of strappy heels and she's dressed this way with intention. It's a sweet, approachable look and yet the heels are just unstable enough for it to look genuine when she trips, one ankle twisting as she reaches out for the nearest passerby.

"Oh, god, I'm sorry," she says, laughing at herself, looking faintly embarrassed. "It's these shoes. Are you alright?"

Comments

[willcabot]

Hitting the alarm on his car, Will loaded up the back with supplies for the trip up to the lodge. He'd already had several hysterical calls from his mother about his timing and responsibilities and well, he couldn't delay it any longer. No matter how much he might wanted to.

Hearing the sound of heels on pavement, Will glanced up and looked over his shoulder at the woman walking towards him. Offering her a warm smile, he reached out to steady her as she stumbled- tripped into him. Hands sliding down her arms, he kept her steady as he stared down at the apparently offending shoes.

"Well, no doubt it's those shoes. They look entirely like trouble. But you, you have nothing to apologise for." Will said with a smile. Taking a step back, he held out his hands to see if she could keep herself up but ready to catch her if she couldn't. He couldn't let such a beautiful woman fall flat on her face, imagine the headlines. "And I'm pretty sure that should be my question... are you okay?"

[seas_open]

There's money here, of that much April is certain after one glance at his car, and with money usually comes a certain sort of power. It's not the kind she's after most of the time, but there's little else that appeals to her so much as someone who might be able to fund her lifestyle for a little while longer. She has nothing against working, she finds it enjoyable enough, but she's not against avoiding it either.

"I'm fine, really," she says with a faint laugh and he still has his hands out, so she sees no reason to take hers off his arm just yet. Money, yes, but he has more than that working for him. "Just trying to get the lay of the land and here I am, tripping all over strangers instead."

[willcabot]

"You sure?" Will asked, his eyebrow raising a little at that before he raises one hand up to lift the shades off his face. Looking her over, he tucks his glasses into his pocket while keeping his other arm out for her to hold onto. Just in case. "You picked a hell of a weekend to try and get to know the lay of the land. Most people are at the lodge or headed there. But we can at least fix that last part, I'm Will. Will Cabot."

[seas_open]

"April Ross," she answers, offering him her hand to shake as she gives him a bright smile. "I did know that, actually, I was out there last night, but I arrived in town a little late to get myself a room, so I had to head back home for the evening. It seems like a very popular event."

Her gaze drifts over him, that same smile still curving her lips before she lifts her eyes back to meet his. "You're heading back out there?" It seems like a good number of people are attending, which has worked out well for her. It's easier to check out what a town has to offer when a good number of its citizens are elsewhere.

[willcabot]

"A pleasure to meet you April," Will replied. Taking her offered hand, he lifted it up to brush a kiss against her knuckles before giving her a flash of a warm, sincere smile. Smoothing his hand over her palm, he let go of her hand gently as she smiled, radiantly, at him. He honestly could not complain about a small delay if it meant spending less time with his family and more with April. "Well, that is a shame. I was looking forward to seeing you up there tonight."

Will leaned back against his car, smiling at her charmingly before nodding at her question.

"That was the plan but if you need a tour guide then I'd be more than willing to postpone for a little while longer."

[seas_open]

He's charming, she can certainly give him that much, and she suspects he's used to getting what he wants when it comes to women -- or just in general -- which might work well for her. She can use that, she thinks, and while there's no saying she might not give him exactly what he wants eventually, she needs some time to work out how and when it might benefit her most. Or maybe he'll just be fun to play with for a little while.

"If someone is expecting you, I'd have for you to keep them waiting," she says, although she has no intention of letting him go. If he heads back to the Lodge any time soon, she suspects she'll be going with him. "Girlfriend?" she asks with a teasing smile. "Wife?" He's not wearing a ring, but there's no harm in checking.

[willcabot]

The fact that she has to ask, the fact she hasn't connected his name with the Cabot family just makes him smile even more at her. Shaking his head, he laughed at the question as he folded his arms across his chest.

"I take it you don't read the papers then? No, no girlfriend or wife." Will replied, tilting his head a little as he looked at her interestedly. A puzzle he wanted to figure out. "Just the Senator and his wife, my parents, and they should be used to me not showing up on time for anything by now."

[seas_open]

April shakes her head, almost apologetic, though she's pleased to have gotten the information she's been looking for. "I spent the last two years in New Port. In Connecticut. I haven't picked up a Siren Cove paper just yet, but should I be expecting to see your face when I do?" She glances around, as if there might be photographers waiting for him now. "If I spend too much time with you, should I be expecting to see my own?"

It wouldn't be the first time she's made it into newspapers, but she does do her best to keep a low profile. Sometimes, though, it's worth it to break that rule. "So there's no one to be disappointed if you take a little time to show me around?" she asks. "Or would it be better if I were to go with you back to the Lodge?"

[willcabot]

"Who knew Connecticut held such wonders? Maybe I should've ignored Sydney and Paris, gone straight for New Port." Will said, pressing his lips together in bemusement. He raised his eyebrows at her, lifting his shoulders in a shrug. Sometimes the press were around, sometimes they weren't. Will had gotten used to their, often intrusive, appearance in his life. Came with the territory of having a rich, powerful father. "Sometimes but usually only if I've been very bad. So, I don't know... are we going to be very bad?"

Will grinned at her, all mischief at the corner of his eyes. He thought she was bound to be trouble but he did always love Trouble. He shook his head at the question, taking a step closer to her as he pushed his hands into his jean pockets.

"Why not both? What are you looking to see round here?"

[bachjones]

Bach sees the woman trip into the big guy, a faint echo of a few notes around her before they get swallowed by his rumble. Or that's what he's imagining, because he can't hear it right now.

He never really liked the big water, can't swim, can't control it, nothing. But right now it's the only music he can appreciate, descendo and crescendo, something to keep the horrible silence away.

Maybe they will burst out into song to make him feel better. Or sex. Bach would be fine with both.

[seas_open]

She catches sight of him there while she's talking to Will and she does a quick appraisal mid-conversation. There aren't many people in town right now and she likes using their absence to her advantage, getting to know those who are and so when she and Will part, she strolls in his direction, slowly at first, watching him as she approaches. She thinks she remembers seeing him the night before at the Lodge, but she'd seen plenty of new faces that night and she can't be certain.

"Hi," she says when she's close enough. Simple, direct, paired with a smile that might not be innocent, but is certainly sweet.

[bachjones]

The woman's gorgeous and if Bach would feel any better he would have braided a song into her hair before she could say another word.

But he doesn't, and he's too close to being hungover to even make much of an effort. She'll probably turn out to be another friend of Lara Quinn anyway.

"Hi", he replies with the lift of an eyebrow. "Did the blond mountain survive your stumble?"

[seas_open]

April laughs, her shoulders lifting as she glances back to where Will has climbed into his car. "You know, I think he'll be just fine. I'm sure there will be someone there to tend to his wounds and warm his bed tonight." The way she says it distinctly implies it won't be her, but that's according to plan. There are men who get exactly what they want without having to work for it and April's always found that staying one step ahead of them keeps them doing what she needs them to do.

"Figures the first person I meet in town is someone I have to walk right into," she says, then returns her attention to the new guy. "Were you up at the Lodge last night? You look familiar."

[bachjones]

"You got his address out of him? Because I could be willing."

Bach gives her a more thorough look, feels something ping deep underneath his ribs. "I was. Free alcohol has a certain pull on me, these days. And I like the effect it has on others. How did you like it?"

[seas_open]

"Should I call him back? I'm sure he has room for two," she says, wrinkling her nose as she grins before she watches him look at her. It's not an entirely unfamiliar look; she's very used to catching the attention of those around her based on how she looks or the way she moves or the right words put to the proper melody, but there's something more to it. Something a little more searching than the superficial gazes she's used to being directed at her.

"I didn't know anyone at all, so it was... interesting," she settles on saying, though she had met that adorable librarian and at least been pointed in the direction of his equally as adorable boyfriend. Neither seems to hold enough power or information for her to do much with, but she'll keep them both in mind. Mostly she'd spent the night watching, waiting, appraising the town as it gathered. Her smile grows a little and she offers her hand. "I'm April."

[bachjones]

"You think he has enough money for a big bed, yeah?"

He scrubs his face with the back of his hands. "Because I want at least one pillow for myself and the space to turn. I'm a princess like that." Who cares about this stranger and why wouldn't he be just like her for a few hours?

"Interesting. If you would be smelling worse, I'd say you're still drunk. Was it that boring?" Bach takes her hand and kisses it. "Bach."

[seas_open]

"I didn't get drunk," she answers as he kisses her hand. "It wasn't boring, I'm just... new in town. I needed to be able to find my own way home at the end of the night. You can't count on your friends to get you there if you don't yet have any." Generally, she avoids getting drunk. It puts people into a state where their senses are lowered, it makes them vulnerable and those are both things she tries to avoid.

But the fact that she doesn't get drunk is another thing she does her best to hide. She'll have a glass or two, make it look like she's had more, and she's a good actress. It's easy to play drunk.

"Did you enjoy it?" she asks, her gaze sweeping over him, her gaze sharp, interested.

[crownofdaisies]

Daisy, having settled into town the day of the start of the wine fest, has taken the opportunity to explore Siren Cove while it lacks a fair amount of its citizens. What she gathers so far is that this place is a post card, all quaint buildings and even quainter people. It's almost too much for her to handle, all of the innocence of the way the place is built like a tourist attraction. Still, her father's note lead her here, so she might as well discover what she can about the place.

Her eyebrows raise when she notices the woman fall into the handsome man; she's used that trick herself a dozen times. She waits for their conversation to end before approaching the girl, offering her a congratulatory smirk.

"Quite impressive," she tells her, "I think he'll play fetch well enough now."

That's when she gets a good look at the other woman's face; her smirk falters a bit. There's something...oddly familiar, about that face.

[seas_open]

There are certain people for whom April will play nice. She'll smile and act sweet, she'll turn on the charm and move in a way that evokes a need in them to be kind to her in return, but there are others who won't respond well to such an act. She does it well, few people ever know it's an act, but there are those who can sniff it out and those are the people who tend to appreciate the person a little closer to the real April.

Her smile turns into a smirk and she lifts one shoulder in a shrug, tucking some hair behind her ear. "A man who looks like that with that much disposal income is a friend of mine," she says, then meets the other woman's gaze. "Which is especially useful when you're new in town."

[crownofdaisies]

Daisy's initial instinct about the other woman is proved right when her smile transitions into a more natural-looking smirk, which only peaks Daisy's interest further. Perhaps this town has the potential to be more than it's sickeningly sweet appearance.

"Sound advice," she comments with a grin of her own. "As a fellow newbie, I suppose I should follow it."

[seas_open]

"I was up at the Lodge last night," April says, lifting her hand to flick her fingers in that direction. "Trust me when I say this town is full of beautiful men with too much money. Or beautiful women with the same if that's more to your tastes." She truly doesn't have a preference either way, not when there is money involved or fun to be had and she's beginning to feel like the options in Siren Cove might well be endless.

"I'm April," she says, offering her hand. "You've only just arrived here as well?"

[crownofdaisies]

"A town full of pretty people with lots of money? Did we stumble into some CW show?" Daisy shakes her head and laughs, thinking how absurd it all seems even as the other woman's information piques her interest. "I can do either, so it seems like this town is full of opportunity, then."

"April? Funny, I'm Daisy," she says as she shakes the other woman's hand. "Indeed. Just yesterday. Settled down in my apartment and everything. What about you? When did you arrive?"

[seas_open]

"Two days ago," April says. "I found a place to stay and thought about sticking around town while the rest of the population went up to this wine festival at the Lodge, but I'm glad I attended. It was... interesting." She'd enjoyed seeing people interact with each other and while she hadn't found herself in many conversations, the simple opportunity to see people within Siren Cove move around was informative enough. She'd seen the people who avoided each other, those who couldn't seem to stay away. Shared glances, knowing smiles, people who ignored each other for the entire night and then clearly met elsewhere after the party was over.

It was all information April wanted.

[crownofdaisies]

"Wine festival? I wish I'd known," she laments briefly. "Sounds like it was a lovely time." Not that Daisy has much use for parties after her college days, but she still enjoys the fuss and bustle of crowds against each other, people pushing each other out of the way as they make for the booze, or shoving each other into walls as they aim for a real wild night.

[seas_open]

"It makes for a good way to get to know the new town," April agrees with a soft laugh. "I only spoke to a few of the people there, but even just watching can sometimes prove to be very illuminating." And there are faces she remembers now, names whispered through the crowd, people she intends on meeting. She has no grand plan for this town, no idea what she might want out of it, but little by little, she thinks she'll be able to find a place for herself.

"So what brings you to Siren Cove?" she asks.